Returning Light · Our shared life
From the land to the table.
The work of the estate supports meals shared in towns and cities. Hospitality gives our belief a practical expression.
The working estate
A community sustained.
Farms, gardens and orchards supply the estate and its city communities. Their surplus supports the Open Table, connecting the work of residents with the needs of people beyond the grounds.
Edna’s founding contribution of land helped make this continuing work possible.
Hospitality & service
A place at the table.
A meal offers a simple way to receive another person. Preparing food, making a place and sharing the work bring the teaching of recognition into everyday life.
The Open Table is part of the Foundation’s community outreach. It is sustained by the same household life as our teaching, relationships and spiritual practice.
The warming fire
Giving has a daily life.
The warming fire is present in care offered to another person. Time in a kitchen, work in a field and attention at a table are all ways of sustaining it.
The Order’s language of offering begins in these familiar responsibilities. Giving is not losing: a contribution can return as the capacity to share a life.